This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
If there was a women's state basketball championship, the University of Utah would have clinched it Saturday at the Huntsman Center.
Junior forward Emily Potter scored 17 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, leading the undefeated Utes to a 71-52 victory over Weber State.
Utah improved to 10-0 this season, including wins over in-state opponents BYU, Utah State, Utah Valley, Southern Utah and Weber State. Only Utah State stayed closer than 17.
The Wildcats battled the Utes for almost three quarters but, in the end, they were doomed by 28.6-percent shooting. In the fourth quarter, Weber State went 2-for-14.
"We weren't awesome, but we got the job done," Utah coach Lynne Roberts said. "And give our players credit. We came off a very emotional win over BYU [and] finals week. It's a hard week. It really is. So we were just a little flat. But we'll be all right."
Paige Crozon contributed 12 points and Erika Bean assisted on 10 of 27 field goals as the Utes beat Weber State in the first game between the schools since 2012.
"At the end of the day, we want to win and move on," Roberts said. "... There are a lot of things from this game we can look at and improve, but I'm proud of our team for finding a way when nothing seemed easy."
Asked about the play of Potter, Roberts glanced at the box score, noted she played only 23 minutes and said, "That's about as efficient as you can be. Pretty impressive."
The Utes dominated the first quarter.
Tanaeya Boclair scored seven points and Potter contributed five points, three rebounds and three blocked shots as Utah raced to a 20-8 lead. Weber State made only two of its first 10 shots while committing five turnovers.
In the second quarter, however, the Utes struggled. They converted only once during an 11-possession stretch. Weber tied the score at 27 before the Utes managed a 31-28 lead at halftime.
"Offensively, after that first quarter, we were sputtering," Roberts said. "We just couldn't get anything going. … That second quarter was awful - defensively and intensity-wise. That's what gave them life and slowed the game down. We talked about that at halftime."
It was still 40-35 in the closing minute of the third quarter, but baskets by Boclair and Bean gave Utah a nine-point lead. Cold-shooting Weber State never got closer.
"I thought we had much better intensity in the second half, even though things still weren't fluid," Roberts said. "It just seemed harder than it had to be."
According to Potter, the Utes must keep improving, but she likes where they are positioned.
"Obviously you can't be better than 10-0," she said. "… I don't want to learn by losing."
Twitter: @sluhm Utah 71, Weber St. 52
Weber St. (6-4)
Drake 4-14 1-2 12, Thomas 3-13 4-8 10, Hale 3-5 2-2 8, Quinn 2-8 1-2 7, Frison 2-2 0-0 4, Danan 1-4 0-0 3, Williams 1-3 0-0 3, Blake 1-3 0-0 2, Craft 0-1 2-4 2, Welch-Coleman 0-5 1-2 1, Adams 0-3 0-0 0, Totals 17-61 11-20 52.
Utah (10-0)
Potter 5-12 7-9 17, Crozon 5-12 0-0 12, Boclair 4-14 1-2 10, Anae 4-5 0-0 9, Nawahine 3-7 2-2 8, Jacobs 1-2 2-2 4, Moore 2-6 0-0 4, Clark 1-1 0-0 3, Bean 1-2 0-0 2, Provo 1-4 0-0 2, Totals 27-65 12-15 71.
Weber St. 8 20 7 17 — 52
Utah 20 11 13 27 — 71
3-Point Goals—Weber St. 7-20 (Drake 3-8, Quinn 2-6, Danan 1-3, Williams 1-2, Thomas 0-1), Utah 5-16 (Crozon 2-6, Anae 1-1, Boclair 1-3, Clark 1-1, Jacobs 0-1, Moore 0-2, Nawahine 0-2). Assists—Weber St. 8 (Hale 2), Utah 19 (Bean 10). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Weber St. 32 (Thomas 7), Utah 56 (Potter 18). Total Fouls—Weber St. 17, Utah 19. A—925.